Most Incredible Japanese Innovations

Japan is known for its incredible innovations which shaped the technological world in which we live today.  There are many products we use every day, which were invented in Japan. Here are five most incredible innovations by Japan.

Most incredible Japanese innovations

1) Instant noodles 

Instant noodles, which are loved by many around the world, were invented by a Japanese.  Inventor Momofuku Ando got inspired by the traditional Japanese noodles and developed an entire production process on his own.  Ando first launched instant noodles in 1958 under the brand name Chikin Ramen. Instant noodles went on to gain immense popularity and are now a staple in every household worldwide.

2) QR code

QR code is an important part of our technology dependent world.  These matrix barcodes were invented in Japan by the company Denso Wave.  QR code was first invented in 1994 and was initially used in the automotive industry.  However, the use of QR code then expanded and it has become one of the most used types of two dimensional codes.

3) Emoji

Emojis are another widely used Japanese innovation.  Emojis were created in 1999 by Shigetaka Kurita and his team.  At the time, Shigetaka Kurita was working with the Japanese mobile operator NTT DoCoMo.  Kurita grew tired of using only text as a form of communication. He drew inspiration from Chinese characters, street signs and Japanese manga to create images representing various emotions.

4) Blue LED lights

Isamu Akasaki, Hiroshi Amano and Shuji Nakamura were the three Japanese scientists who are credited for inventing high resolution blue LED lights.  The invention of blue LED lights paved way for many sophisticated technologies like energy efficient TVs, power saving light bulbs, mobiles and computer screens.  The three scientists demonstrated the high brightness blue LED lights through a gallium nitride growth process.  For coming up with this innovation, Akasaki, Amano and Nakamura were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2014.

5) Flash memory

The small memory card which stores information on your phone was also invented in Japan.  Flash memory was first invented by the Japanese multinational company Toshiba in 1980. The device was introduced in the market in 1987.  Flash memory was created by Fujio Masuoka of Toshiba after Masuoka proposed a theory of creating a new device with the ability to erase memories quickly and easily. 

If we missed any other such incredible Japanese innovations, comment below and let us know.